Speech of the Century

by smith, Mon Jan 16, 2006 at 03:11:02 PM EST

Al Gore made my wishes come true today with a powerful and eloquent speech that said everything that needs to be said about the current constitutional crisis. He did not mince any words -- this speech is the very model of what I want my representatives to say, and his call for action was spot on.

Gore called for five actions:

  1. Appoint a Special Counsel to investigate illegal NSA spying
  2. Expand federal whistleblower protection
  3. Have genuine Hill hearings, not the fake playacting we've been accustomed to
  4. Stop the reauthorization of Patriot Act
  5. Make telecom companies obey the law, and stop enabling illegal activities

There is so very much more in this speech. It really has to be seen and heard to be believed -- it's currently up at C-Span (http://www.c-span.org/) under "recent programs". It may make you weep.




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Transcript (3.00 / 1)

is here.

Here are the REC list "live blogging" diaries at dKos:

I hope Chris, Matt, or Jonathan will be making a good post covering Gore's speech in detail.

Thanks for posting. Recommended.

Obama's Pop. Vote LEAD = 600K | Clinton & McCain = WAR Authorizers
by NeuvoLiberal on Mon Jan 16, 2006 at 03:16:48 PM EST

A Cure For What Ails The Democratic Party (none / 0)

Al's speech was timely, forceful and clear cut. Very well done and worthy of recognition.

I think Al may have discovered a cure for the liberal disease. A five year sabatical from the DLC seems to have given Al Gore a new spine, a new voice and a new attitude.

Five  years is definitely sufficient for a complete cure, but perhaps more lengthy than required. Is there some way of scheduling rotating one year isolation from the DLC sabaticals for all Democrats? We should probably start with Hillary. The combination of her high poll numbers and relatively brief exposure to the libeal disease make her an ideal test subject.

by Gary Boatwright on Tue Jan 17, 2006 at 12:18:21 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Transcript (none / 0)

oops, forgot to mention Scott in the list above.

Here is fine FP post by Matt: Gore: The Conscience of the Party.

Obama's Pop. Vote LEAD = 600K | Clinton & McCain = WAR Authorizers
by NeuvoLiberal on Tue Jan 17, 2006 at 12:00:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]

It Reminds Me... (3.00 / 3)

At the start of the Iraq Invasion, we learned that every time a bomb was dropped in a town in Iraq, some little guy would belt out "GOD IS GREAT." That was positively haunting. They may be on the other side, but those folks sure as hell know their business.

God probably does not really need much reassurance from me. But just for the record: GORE IS GREAT!

I always knew the guy had the right stuff.

by blues on Mon Jan 16, 2006 at 03:57:31 PM EST

Without question (3.00 / 2)

one of the best speeches I have ever seen. Al Gore is filled with fire, has found his voice, and won my heart all over again.

If only...

Listen to the speech, read it, send it to your friends. Be part of this moment--the times they are a changing...


Old hippies never die, they just learn to blog.
by zesty grapher on Mon Jan 16, 2006 at 07:06:22 PM EST

Ummm (none / 0)

I guess if you start counting from 2000, then maybe it's the "speech of the century" but it's more than a little blasphemous to be touting this as the greatest speech of the past hundred years on Dr. King's birthday. This was a glorified policy wonk speech that's exceptionally important because nobody else is saying it loudly enough yet, but not exactly "I have a dream" or "We do them because they are hard."
by Lucas O'Connor on Mon Jan 16, 2006 at 11:37:15 PM EST

After all (none / 0)

There are still 94 years left until nominations are closed. Perhaps smith meant the best speech so far this century. Peggy Noonan and Barbara Bush have been very impressed with some of George's speeches. Howard Dean has given some good speeches and Sen. Byrd gave a real zinger last month if you limit the category to American politicians.

As speeches by American politicians go, I think it is very safe to say that Al has clearly given one of the top five political speeches by an American politicians so far this century.

by Gary Boatwright on Mon Jan 16, 2006 at 11:51:25 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: After all (none / 0)

Suppose it depends on how you define "best." As has been mentioned here and elsewhere, it was heavy on the insider lingo and not exactly the sort of thing that's gonna move the masses. By the same token though, it's exceptionally important and well executed for what it is. I don't know, I guess maybe I'm tough on speeches. If it's a great speech, I want it to still make me tingle from reading it years later the way Dr. King or the Kennedys are able to do. The major failing in this speech is that there's no rallying cry. Accuse me perhaps of being overly beholden to the soundbite, but for speeches to really be great, they have to resonate afterwards. And to really resonate afterwards, there has to be something that echoes in your head. I've never seen Gore demonstrate an ability to do that- he always (and I know it's dangerous repetition of the traditional criticism) has been technically proficient but without selling the fire. I continue to give him the benefit of the doubt but he just can't stir me.
by Lucas O'Connor on Tue Jan 17, 2006 at 12:01:44 AM EST
[ Parent ]


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